Kings Square will transform the site of the former Perth Entertainment Centre into a vibrant business, residential and social hub in the heart of the City. The development forms part of the Perth City Link which will reconnect the City with Northbridge for the first time in over a century.

The Perth Entertainment Centre (PEC) was Perth’s leading concert venue for over four decades and hosted hundreds of renowned local and international acts. By the turn of the century, the ageing PEC had reached the end of its useful economic life.

Enter the State Government, which in 2008 revealed the final Master Plan for the Perth City Link project – an ambitious plan to redevelop the railway lands North of Wellington Street and reconnect Perth to Northbridge. The Perth City Link project, managed by the Metropolitan Redevelopment Authority (MRA), was the catalyst for Seven Entertainment, the owner of the PEC and the only private landholder within the project, to embark upon a Master Plan to redevelop the site to its maximum potential.

Working for Leighton Properties, Rowe Group was engaged to coordinate the approval process for a revised Kings Square Master Plan for a total of seven buildings: four office / retail buildings, one mixed use hub containing retail, tavern, gymnasium, child care and boutique office space, and two high-rise residential towers with over 520 apartments.

Interspersed between the buildings will be a substantial high quality Public Realm connecting the site with its surrounds, including a pocket park known as Wellington Gardens and Telethon Avenue that will link Perth Arena to an extended King Street.

In addition to the in-principle approval of the revised Master Plan, Rowe Group has successfully secured planning approvals for buildings KS1 to KS4, the Public Realm works, and a Transport Strategy setting out the proponent’s commitments to the provision of tenant car parking and cyclist facilities. Rowe Group worked with a team of consultants to secure all the necessary approvals from the MRA, including Crone Partners Architects and Cox Architecture.

With its strong focus on delivering a high quality pedestrian friendly public realm within Perth City Link, the MRA closely examined the architectural qualities and design outcomes of the project proposals.

Working with Leighton Properties and the project architects, Rowe Group ensured the development delivered the best possible design outcomes for the City, paying particular attention to the activation of the ground plane, adhering to the principles of crime prevention through design, and achieving human-scaled building podiums to enhance the public realm. This required a creative response to the MRA’s Design Guidelines to minimise the impact of services, maximise retail frontages, reduce the impact of high rise towers, and screen all parking areas from the pedestrian environment.

Buildings KS1 to KS4, and a substantial component of public realm works, are now complete.